Department for Transport

High Speed 2 Railway Line

lord berkeley: To ask Her Majesty's Government how much has been paid by (1) HS2, and (2) the Department for Transport, in compensation and costs for land or businesses purchased, relocated or affected by HS2; what is their estimate of the total to be paid up to the time when the works are complete; andwhether the latter figure is included in the Department for Transport’s cost estimate for Phase 1 of £24.1billion at 2013 prices.

baroness sugg: The total cash sum spent on land and property for Phase One from 2011/12 until 2017-18 is £1.6bn. This consists of expenditure across all the different statutory and non-statutory property compensation schemes. We do not publish an estimate of the total property cost as it may affect claims for settlements for property acquisitions, and so is commercially sensitive information. Our estimates of the total property cost is a part of the overall cost estimate for Phase One.

Department for Transport: Databases

lord harris of haringey: To ask Her Majesty's Government what percentage of the Department for Transport's data is hosted (1) in the UK, and (2) overseas.

baroness sugg: The vast majority of the Department of Transport’s (DfT) data (97%) is stored in the UK, with 3% stored overseas in countries in the European Economic Area. DfT follows the Cabinet Office’s HMG Offshoring Policy when deciding whether it is appropriate to store data overseas. This involves considering whether it is safe, legal, sensible and right for the business. This answer does not include information relating to the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA), as the way DVSA records the number of records for each information asset means it is not possible to provide an accurate percentage split.

Shipping: Statutory Instruments

baroness randerson: To ask Her Majesty's Government which international maritime legislation appears in the backlog referred to in the 20th Report of the Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee published on 1 March; and what is their estimate of when they expect to have cleared that backlog.

baroness sugg: The backlog referred to in the 20th Report related to a list produced in early 2016 of the following international instruments which were at that time awaiting transposition into UK law: SOLAS II-1 (Passenger Ship Construction: Ships of Classes I, II and II(A)) RegulationsSOLAS II-1 (Passenger Ship Construction: Ships of Classes III to VI) RegulationsSOLAS II-1 (Cargo ship construction) RegulationsSOLAS II-1 (Amendment to noise code)SOLAS II-2 (Fire protection) (Small ships)SOLAS II-2 (Fire protection) (Large ships)SOLAS II-2 (Fire Protection) (Miscellaneous amendments)SOLAS III (Life Saving Appliances) (Entry into enclosed spaces)SOLAS III (Lifesaving appliances) (amendments)SOLAS III (Musters, Training and decision support systems)SOLAS IV (Radio) (EPIRB registration)SOLAS IV (Radio installations)SOLAS V (Safety of navigation)SOLAS VI (Carriage of cargoes and oil fuels)SOLAS VII (Carriage of package irradiated fuel – carriage of dangerous goods) (INF code)SOLAS IX (control of pollution – Management of the safe operation of ships)SOLAS XI (Special Measures to Enhance Maritime Safety)SOLAS XII (Additional safety measures for bulk carriers)SOLAS XII (Gas carriers)IMDG Code (International Maritime Dangerous Goods)MARPOL I (Prevention of Oil pollution)MARPOL II and IBC Code (Dangerous noxious liquids and substances in bulk)*MARPOL III (Prevention pollution by harmful substances carried by sea in packaged form)*MARPOL IV and V (Sewage and Garbage)MARPOL VI (Prevention of air pollution from ships) (amendments) (regulations)MARPOL VI (Prevention of air pollution from ships) (amendments) (order)MARPOL VI (Nitrous Oxide and Sulphur Dioxide)MARPOL Drilling RigsMLC (Maritime Labour Convention) (miscellaneous amendments) *MLC (Minimal requirements for seafarers) *MLC (Medical Certification) (amendments)MLC (Compulsory financial security amendment) RegulationsSTCW F (Seafarer Training Certification and Watchkeeping) (Fishing)HSC (High Speed Craft code)Load Line (amendments)*COLREGS*HNS (Hazardous and Noxious substances convention) (regulations)HNS (Protocol)HNS (Order)Ballast Water regulations * To date, six of these have been completed and a further sixteen are in progress. It is likely that, in some cases, more than one of the above items listed will be implemented by a single Statutory Instrument. Therefore, the number of instruments required to effect the implementation will be lower than the number of items on the list as some amendments will be grouped together. Use of the power to make ambulatory references in transposing instruments will ensure that future technical amendments to specific international instruments will be implemented automatically. Neither the HNS Convention nor the 2010 Protocol are yet in force internationally, but it is expected the UK will implement them. In addition, the Ballast Water Convention is in force but has not been ratified by the UK, and it expected the UK will accede to it once it has been amended. The Department is working to a programme to update the remainder by no later than the end of 2020.

Aviation

lord naseby: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to review the number of safeguarded aerodromes.

lord naseby: To ask Her Majesty's Government when they last reviewed the number of safeguarded aerodromes.

baroness sugg: In 2016 the Civil Aviation Authority and the Department for Transport reviewed the number of safeguarded aerodromes, also consulting the then Department for Communities and Local Government. The Government has no current plans to review the number of safeguarded aerodromes. Aerodromes may request official safeguarding status from the Department for Transport at any time and the Department will consider each application received. In February 2018 we appointed Byron Davies as the General Aviation (GA) champion. Byron is leading important research, working with the GA community, to identify a network of strategically important airfields to help the GA sector.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

ACAS: Staff

lord beecham: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the answer byLord Keen of Elie on 26 April in relation to the backlog in Employment Tribunal cases, what action they are taking in relation to the staffing of Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service offices in the light of the difficulties experienced in Newcastle.

lord henley: Acas has recruited additional conciliators and has plans to further increase its conciliation workforce in the coming months.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Sudan: Prisoners

lord alton of liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their estimate of the number of Dafuris who remain incarcerated in Sudan's prisons despite the issuing of a release order; what information they have about the wellbeing of those prisoners; and what representations they have made to the government of Sudan regarding the continued detention of those prisoners.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The Government of Sudan does not release statistics on the number of detainees from each state held in its prisons. We continue to urge the Government of Sudan to guarantee the constitutional and human rights of its citizens, including the right to freedom of expression, to political participation, and to due process in the judicial system.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office: Databases

lord harris of haringey: To ask Her Majesty's Government what percentage of theForeign and Commonwealth Office's data is hosted (1) in the UK, and (2) overseas.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: All data for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO)'s corporate IT platform is hosted either in the UK or within the premises of our Diplomatic Missions. Any FCO data held off-platform is subject to Cabinet Office Security Policy Framework guidance and to the provisions of the Data Protection Act where appropriate.

Chemical Weapons Convention

lord hylton: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they intend to seek to persuade the governments of Egypt, Israel, Palestine, North Korea and South Sudan, and other non-signatories, to ratify the Chemical Weapons Convention.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: 192 states are signatories to the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC). We are encouraging all those that are not signatories to ratify.

Nabeel Rajab

lord scriven: To ask Her Majesty's Government what representations, if any, they have made to the government of Bahrain regarding the treatment of human rights activist Nabeel Rajab in Jau Prison, includingreportsthat he has recently been denied access to water for over 24 hours andbeen confined to his cell for 23 hours a day for a week.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The Government monitors events in Bahrain closely, including the case of Nabeel Rajab. If we have concerns on specific issues, including prison conditions, we raise these with the Bahraini authorities. We encourage those with concerns about treatment whilst in detention to report these to the relevant human rights oversight bodies, and we continue to encourage the Government of Bahrain to deliver on its international and domestic human rights commitments.

Bahrain: Human Rights

lord scriven: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the United States State Department’s Country Report on Human Rights Practices for 2017 in respect of Bahrain, and of the concerns raised about unlawful killings and the torture of detainees and prisoners.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The Government monitors events in Bahrain closely, and takes note of a number of sources of information, including publications by the United States. Bahrain remains a 'Human Rights Priority Country' as set out in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Human Rights Report.

Bahrain: Political Prisoners

lord scriven: To ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they have made to the government of Bahrain regarding the use of citizenship revocation and statelessness as a punitive measure against political prisoners in Bahrain,in the light of reportsthat more than 600 Bahraini nationals have had their citizenship revoked since 2012.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The UK has concerns about the revocation of nationality when it renders individuals stateless. We have raised this issue at a senior level with the Government of Bahrain.

Ali Ahmed Abdulla Moumen

lord scriven: To ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they have made to the government of Bahrain regarding the targeting of family members of Ali Ahmed Abdulla Moumen, killed by security forces in 2011.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The Government monitors events in Bahrain closely. We continue to raise concerns about human rights with the Bahraini authorities, both in private and in public.We encourage those with concerns to report these to the relevant human rights oversight bodies, and we continue to encourage the Government of Bahrain to deliver on its international and domestic human rights commitments.

Hajer Mansoor Hassan

lord scriven: To ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they have made to the government of Bahrain regarding the treatment of Hajer Mansoor Hassan; and what assessment they have made of whether she is being denied medication by prison authorities in Isa Town.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The Government continues to monitor events in Bahrain closely. We encourage those with concerns about treatment in detention to report these to the appropriate oversight body. We urge these oversight bodies to carry out swift and thorough investigations into any such claims. We understand that the National Institution for Human Rights is aware of this case and is monitoring the situation, and that the Ombudsman of the Ministry of Interior is investigating the claims.

Bahrain: Appeals

lord scriven: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether UK diplomats will attend the final appeal hearing of seven civilians, four of whom are currently on the death row, being tried in a Bahraini military court on 25 April.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: ​The trials in military courts have been closely monitored by the British Embassy in Bahrain. The UK welcomes the decision on 26 April of His Majesty King Hamad Bin Isa Al Khalifa to commute four death sentences.

Jerusalem: Palestinians

baroness tonge: To ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they are making to the government of Israel following reports of the deportation ofIbtisam Obeid, a Palestinian woman from Jerusalem who has lived there with her husband and children for the past sixteen years.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: Whilst we have not raised this specific issue with the Israeli authorities, we are clear that Israel has legal obligations under the Fourth of the Geneva Convention of 1949 that prohibits the deportation of protected persons from the occupied territory. We discuss implementation of these obligations with the Government of Israel.

Israel: Hamas

baroness tonge: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their response to the threat by a senior Israeli minister that the Israeliauthoritieswill assassinate Hamas leaders.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: We are not aware of the specific threat referenced. To have the best chance of success, the Middle East Peace Process must be conducted in an atmosphere free from violence. We press the parties to refrain from actions which make peace more difficult. We have also been clear that Hamas must reject violence, recognise Israel and abide by previous agreements.

Egypt: Gaza

baroness tonge: To ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they are making to the government of Egypt regarding the closing of the Rafah Crossing in both directions.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: We regularly raise the Rafah border crossing with the Egyptian Government. Most recently, our Deputy Head of Mission at the British Embassy in Cairo raised this with the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs on 12 April. We encourage Egypt to be as flexible as possible with regard to their plans for the Rafah border crossing.

Israel: Bedouin

baroness tonge: To ask Her Majesty's Government whatrepresentations they are making to the government of Israel regardingthe threat of demolition by Israeli forces of the EU-funded school in the Bedouin community of Al Muntar.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: Whilst we have not raised this specific issue with the Israeli authorities, the Minister for the Middle East discussed the issue of demolitions with the Israeli Ambassador to the UK on 19 April.

Israel: Palestinians

baroness tonge: To ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they are making to the government of Israel regarding access for Palestinian historians to Israeli archives.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: We have not had any discussions with the Israeli authorities on this specific issue. We continue to have concerns about the difficulties of access to Jerusalem for Palestinians from the West Bank, or for those residents of Jerusalem who live beyond the Separation Barrier. Through our Embassy in Tel Aviv we have lobbied the appropriate authorities on the issue of movement and access.

British Overseas Territories: Seas and Oceans

viscount ridley: To ask Her Majesty's Government how much UK Overseas Territories Blue Belt programme funding was spent with (1) the Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science, (2) the Marine Management Organisation, and (3) UK Overseas Territory governments, in the financial years (a) 2016–17, and (b) 2017–18.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: During 2016-17 the Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (CEFAS) had a total spend of £803,064; the Marine Management Organisation (MMO) had a total spend of £194,548 and £300,000 was spent by Ascension Island Government. During 2017-18 a total of £1,881,000 was spent by CEFAS, £875,000 by the MMO; £300,00 spent by Ascension Island Government; £725,000 by the British Indian Ocean Territory Administration; £39,500 spend by the St Helena Government; £140,000 by Tristan da Cunha Government; and £52,500 spent by the Government of South Georgia & the South Sandwich Islands.In both periods, up to £500,000 per year was available to all Territories through the Overseas Territories Environment and Climate Fund (also known as Darwin Plus) for bespoke marine projects.

South Sudan: Politics and Government

the earl of sandwich: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the political, diplomatic and humanitarian progress made over the last three years by the government of South Sudan.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: Over the last three years, the situation in South Sudan has continued to deteriorate. More than four years of fighting and a lack of progress towards political stability have led to an appalling humanitarian crisis, with an estimated 7 million people in need of assistance, and over 5 million people severely food insecure.The Government of South Sudan has ultimate responsibility for alleviating the suffering of its people. We urge them to engage sincerely with the High Level Revitalisation Forum, and to address the security and governance issues that are essential for lasting peace

Nigeria: Christianity

lord alton of liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the killings on 24 April at Saint Ignatius Church, in Mbalom, Nigeria; whom they believe to have been responsible; and what assessment they have made of the response of the Nigerian authoritiesto attacks on Christian communities.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: We condemn the recent attack in Mbalom, Benue state, which included an attack on a church and up to fifty houses. Two priests were among at least 18 people reportedly killed. We are appalled by the tragic loss of life. We urge the Nigerian government to investigate fully all such violent attacks and hold those responsible to account. Such attacks have a devastating impact on lives and communities of all faiths and are a major barrier to Nigeria's economic development.

Commonwealth: Older People

baroness greengross: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they will take during the Prime Minister's term as Commonwealth Chair-in-Office to ensure that (1) older people, and (2) ageing issues, are integrated into the work of the Commonwealth and the agenda of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting 2020.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: During the recent Heads of Government Meeting, the Foreign Secretary welcomed the first ever Commonwealth Elders' Forum, convened by Common Age. This event included discussions on human rights, women and dementia, and elderly care.During the UK's period as Commonwealth Chair-in-Office we will work closely with fellow member states, the Commonwealth Secretariat and accredited organisations to support the delivery of the conclusions of this Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, as expressed in the communiqué.The communiqué recognised the importance of "the full social, economic and political participation of all, irrespective of age, sex, disability, race, ethnicity, origin, religion or economic or other status". As host country, Rwanda will be responsible for developing the agenda for the 2020 summit, in consultation with member states.

Department of Health and Social Care

Prescriptions: Fees and Charges

lord clement-jones: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many false declarations of prescription exemption have been challenged by the NHS Business Services Authority over the last eight years;how many weresubsequentlyfound to have been the result of a simple mistake;what were the costs involved in following up allegedly false declarations; andwhat werethe total fines collected for the past eight years for false declarations of prescription exemption.

lord o'shaughnessy: The information is not held in the format requested. The NHS Business Services Authority (NHS BSA) assumed responsibility for the Prescription Exemption Checking Service from 17 September 2014. Since this date, 2,753,700 false declarations of prescription exemptions have been challenged by the NHS BSA; 902,304 were subsequently found to have been the result of a simple mistake and £44,650,549.24 is the figure recovered. This money is paid back into frontline services.Information relating to the costs involved in following up allegedly false declarations is not collected by the NHS BSA. The information in the following table relates to the cost of the whole prescription exemption checking service. 2014/15£1,041,6882015/16£2,942,1222016/17£5,938,1632017/18£6,825,928

Department of Health and Social Care: Databases

lord harris of haringey: To ask Her Majesty's Government what percentage of the Departmentof Health and Social Care'sdata is hosted (1) in the UK, and (2) overseas.

lord o'shaughnessy: Of the Department’s data, 99% is hosted in the United Kingdom and 1% is hosted overseas. Data hosted in the UK includes the data in:- Shared drives;- Servers;- Microsoft Azure subscription;- Electronic payslips system;- Travel and accommodation booking system; and- Collaboration tool, Kahootz.Systems that host data overseas includes:- Room booking system Matrix; and- Intranet.The percentages provided are only for services that are used by Departmental staff and does not include any of our arm’s length bodies and their data hosting.

General Practitioners

lord laming: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the extent to which the organisation of the General Practitioner service continues to besuited to being the foundation of a comprehensive primary care health service.

lord o'shaughnessy: The general practice partnership model has made a huge contribution over the lifetime of the National Health Service. This is why the Secretary of State has commissioned a review of the partnership model. The terms of the review are being developed with the British Medical Association and Royal College of General Practitioners.

Primary Health Care

lord laming: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the extent to which increased demand on accident and emergency services is influenced by the lack of a comprehensive primary care health service.

lord o'shaughnessy: No formal assessment has been made of the relationship between primary care services and accident and emergency attendances.Extended access to more convenient appointments later in the evening and at weekends in general practice is now in place for 52% of the population (as at October 2017) and is expected to deliver an additional 9 million consultations following 100% population coverage from October 2018.Additional comprehensive urgent and emergency care programmes continue to be delivered to help to ease pressures on accident and emergency services and improve the flow of patients through hospitals, such as Urgent Treatment Centres, front door clinical streaming, NHS 111 and the development of NHS 111 Online.

Health Services: Reciprocal Arrangements

baroness quin: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the possible increases in travel insurance for UK citizens if the UK were no longer to be part of the European Health Insurance Card scheme after Brexit.

lord o'shaughnessy: The Department has not made a formal assessment of the possible increases in travel insurance for United Kingdom citizens if the UK were no longer to be part of the European Health Insurance Card scheme after Brexit. However, the Department engages regularly with the Association of British Insurers and industry to discuss matters relating to reciprocal healthcare and this will continue.

Hepatitis

baroness randerson: To ask Her Majesty's Government what are the latest estimatesfrom the Operational Delivery Networks, produced by NHS England, of the total number of people infected with Hepatitis C in England, broken downby disease state: (1) mild, (2) moderate, (3) cirrhotic, and (4) end stage.

lord o'shaughnessy: NHS England has advised that the information on infection rates and disease state is not available in the format requested. Most recent estimates suggest that around 160,000 people in England are living with chronic hepatitis C infection.Over the past three years Operational Delivery Networks (ODNs) have delivered the mber of hepatitis C treatments as shown in the following table. ODN2015/162016/172017/18North East and Cumbria250395620Greater Manchester and Eastern Cheshire521687845Cheshire and Merseyside252347585South Yorkshire212340438Humberside and North Yorkshire112377329West Yorkshire328445584Lancashire and South Cumbria134330343Leicester133255265Birmingham518748742Nottingham268383470Eastern Hepatitis Network333586706West London554562757North Central London Viral Hepatitis Network421730865Barts299494667South Thames Hepatitis Network5578701,068Surrey Hepatitis Services91154174Sussex Hepatology Network165241274Thames Valley221347425Wessex270341412Bristol and Severn203326419South West Peninsula189328394Kent Network via Kings-154175 Note:Kent Network was not active in 2015/16 hence no treatments were recorded.

Hepatitis

baroness randerson: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will publish the data recorded in the National Hepatitis C register referred to in the NHS press release of 29 January, which set out plansfor England to be the first in the world to eliminate the disease.

lord o'shaughnessy: The National Hepatitis C Patient Registry was established in 2017 to record and monitor treatment uptake, outcomes and increased diagnosis rates in real time. To date, NHS England has only been able to publish data on the number of treatments successfully delivered; this shows that nationally 9,440 treatments were delivered in England in 2016/17 against a target of 10,000. While NHS England provides information on treatment numbers for inclusion in the Public Health England annual surveillance report, it does not intend to publish registry data separately because the data contains confidential patient information.

Surgical Mesh Implants

lord hunt of kings heath: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have any plans to undertake an audit on the use of recetopexy mesh and mesh used in men.

lord hunt of kings heath: To ask Her Majesty's Government whetherthey have any plans to undertake an audit on mesh use in relation to (1) private patients, (2) outpatients, and (3) patients receiving care from GPs.

lord o'shaughnessy: NHS Digital published an audit on 17 April 2018 Retrospective Review of Surgery for Urogynaecological Prolapse and Stress Urinary Incontinence using Tape or Mesh. An executive summary of the report is attached.The audit reviews Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) data. HES data contains details of all admissions, outpatient appointments and accident and emergency attendances at National Health Service hospitals in England. It includes private patients treated in NHS hospitals, patients who were resident outside of England and care delivered by treatment centres, including those in the independent sector, funded by the NHS.Due to the importance of the issue, I have asked the Chief Medical Officer to seek the views of relevant NHS bodies, surgical societies, and patient groups on the implications of the statistics, and to report back within a month. This will allow us to engage in thoughtful, considered debate about the next steps we take. The Government is open to the possibility of undertaking further analyses, such as other mesh procedures where they have the potential to provide helpful insights.In February 2018, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care committed £1.1 million to the development of a prospective national clinical audit (registry). As part of the development, the Department will be interested in learning from the gaps in the data collected so far; this is likely to involve a discussion with stakeholders on how to capture experience in general practice.



Retrospective Review of Surgery - Exec Summary
(PDF Document, 854.66 KB)

Medical Treatments

the countess of mar: To ask Her Majesty's Government why the NHS Choices website includes an article on the Lightning Process when this treatment is not available on the NHS.

lord o'shaughnessy: In addition to providing an overview of the symptoms, diagnosis and treatment of a wide range of conditions, NHS Choices also seeks to provide a balanced view of emerging, new or controversial treatments that are reported in the press, to help the public understand the facts of the story. In September 2017 the ‘Behind the headlines’ section of the NHS Choices website included a piece on the Lightning Process for treating chronic fatigue syndrome, following national press coverage which reported the findings of trial of this treatment.

Wales Office

Wales Office: Databases

lord harris of haringey: To ask Her Majesty's Government what percentage of the Wales Office's data is hosted (1) in the UK, and (2) overseas.

lord bourne of aberystwyth: Wales Office data is hosted on the Ministry of Justice systems. The Ministry of Justice estimate that 90% of the data held is hosted in the UK and the remaining 10% overseas. Wales Office data cannot be disaggregated within this estimate. No standard methodology exists for calculating this figure, and as such a significant margin of error can be assumed.

Department for Education

Schools: Vacancies

the earl of clancarty: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the Department for Education plans to provide a website that will allow schools to advertise staff vacancies for free.

lord agnew of oulton: The department is developing a free national digital service for schools to publish teacher vacancies, and for teachers to search for them. This new service aims to reduce the cost of teacher recruitment for schools, and make it easier for teachers to find new posts. Testing will start with a sample of schools in May and the learning from this user testing will inform the next stage of roll out.

Ministry of Justice

John Worboys

lord beecham: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they intend to take to address the failure of the Ministry of Justice to include all relevant information in the dossierit provided to the Parole Board in the Worboys case.

lord keen of elie: Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS) omitted the sentencing remarks from the criminal trial, one of the mandatory documents for each parole dossier, in accordance with the Parole Board Rules. HMPPS implemented fresh and robust checks on every dossier, before the High Court handed down its judgement, to ensure that dossiers are complete for the Parole Board to undertake its consideration of each case. HMPPS has issued guidance to assist report writers in cases where the offences of which an offender has been convicted may not provide to the Parole Board a comprehensive understanding of the offender’s risk. I can provide reassurance that her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service had implemented fresh and robust checks on every dossier, before the High Court handed down its judgement, to ensure that dossiers are complete for the Parole Board to undertake its consideration of each case. It is not usual to include police evidence, or information in respect of civil actions, in the dossier submitted to the Parole Board. As the High Court said, this was an exceptional case, as there were a very high number of complaints to the police, and two of Worboys’ victims brought a successful action against the Metropolitan Police for its failures to properly investigate their complaints. Therefore, in the light of this judgement, the Secretary of State has pledged that all relevant evidence of past offending should be included in the dossiers submitted to the Parole Board, including, possibly, police evidence, so it can be robustly tested at each Parole Board hearing. Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service is in the process of issuing new guidance to ensure that this is absolutely clear to those submitting evidence.

Legal Profession: Fees and Charges

lord vinson: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Keen of Elie on 28 March (HL6178), given that litigation costs are a minor proportion of legal fees, what plans they have, if any, to begin collecting data on the uniformity of hourly rates charged throughout the legal profession.

lord vinson: To ask Her Majesty's Government, in the light of the report from the Competition and Markets Authority Legal services market study published in December 2016, what plans they have, if any, to ask the Competition and Markets Authority to suggest to law firms that they should publish their hourly rates online.

lord keen of elie: The Government has no plans to collect data on the uniformity of hourly rates charged throughout the legal profession, or to ask the Competition and Markets Authority to suggest to law firms that they should publish their hourly rates online. The legal profession in England and Wales is independent of Government and the Legal Services Board is the oversight regulator. The regulatory bodies are taking forward measures to achieve greater pricing transparency in the sector. The Legal Services Board is monitoring progress on this.

Sexual Offences: Medical Treatments

lord farmer: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their estimate of the proportion of sex offenders serving an indeterminate sentence for public protection whose suitability for parole would be enhanced by voluntarily undertaking a programme of medication to manage their sex drives.

lord keen of elie: It is not possible to estimate the proportion of sexual offenders serving an indeterminate sentence of imprisonment for public protection (IPP) whose suitability for parole might be enhanced if they were to take medication to manage their sex drives. This is because the impact that such medication might have varies considerably from individual to individual, having regard to their offending histories and interests, and because medication of this kind requires the offender’s consent. In any event, the Medication to Manage Sexual Arousal (MMSA) service is currently offered only at seven prisons. Whilst Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Services keeps MMSA under continuous review as part of its commitment to evidence-based approaches to reducing reoffending and protecting the public, there are no plans currently to expand MMSA beyond those seven prisons.

Sexual Offences

lord farmer: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the extent to which evidence of the efficacy and cost effectiveness of polygraph testing of sex offenders is strong enough to support the roll out of a national programme to monitor sex offenders’ compliance with licence conditions and supervision designed to control or minimise the risk that such offenders pose to the community.

lord keen of elie: Sections 28 to 30 of The Offender Management Act 2007 (the 2007 Act) enable a polygraph licence condition to be added to the release licence of certain sex offenders. Initially, the condition was available in only eight Probation Trusts, by way of a pilot of mandatory polygraph testing. In July 2013, following research by Kent University it was agreed to make the condition available nationally. Several criteria must be met for a sex offender to qualify for mandatory polygraph testing: the offender must be over 18;the offender must be subject to a period on licence, having received a custodial sentence of 12 months or more;the offender must be on licence for a specified sexual offence as defined by part 2 of schedule 15 to the Criminal Justice Act 2003; andthe offender must be assessed as high or very high risk of serious harm and high or very high risk of reoffending. In limited circumstances, offenders who are not assessed as high or very high risk of reoffending may be required to undertake polygraph testing by way of licence condition. For this to be approved, there must be evidence of dynamic risk factors which indicate an increase in risk such that that risk may be mitigated by polygraph testing.

Prostitution

lord mccoll of dulwich: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many people have been (1) arrested, (2) charged, and (3) convicted, under section 53A of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 in each calendar year since that provision came into force in 2010; and what penalty was imposed in cases of conviction.

lord keen of elie: The number of defendants proceeded against at magistrates' courts and the number of offenders found guilty and sentenced by type of sentence at all courts under section 53A of the Sexual Offences Act 2003, from 2010 to 2016 can be viewed in the table below. Criminal justice statistics for 2017 are planned for publication in May 2018. The number of defendants proceeded against at magistrates' courts and number of offenders found guilty and sentenced by type of sentence at all courts under section 53A of the Sexual Offences Act 2003(1), England and Wales, 2010 to 2016(2)(3)  2010201120122013201420152016Total Proceeded Against49179--2-Total Guilty43126--2-Total Sentenced43126--2-of which:   Immediate Custody-------Suspend Sentence-------Community Sentences-------Fine2983--2-Absolute Discharge1------Conditional Discharge1232----Otherwise dealt with111----' - ' = Nil(1) Section 53A of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 inserted by Policing and Crime Act 2009(2) The figures given in the table relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe.(3) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. Arrests and Charging data are not held by the Ministry of Justice.

Treasury

European Investment Fund

lord taylor of warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government whatassessmentthey have made of theeffect that the loss of investment by the European Investment Fund will have on UK entrepreneurship and innovation.

lord bates: As part of the ongoing work on the UK’s exit from the EU, the government has been assessing the contribution European Investment Fund (EIF) finance makes to the UK economy. EIF finance supports investment into UK businesses, including entrepreneurial and high-growth businesses. As the Chancellor said in his 2017 Mansion House speech, the EIF has been an important source of funding for growth businesses. The UK is actively engaging the EU on the relationship after the UK exits the EU. The UK considers that it may prove to be in the mutual interest of all sides for the UK to maintain some form of ongoing relationship with the European Investment Bank Group (including the EIF) after leaving the EU, and we will explore these options with the EU as part of the negotiations. In addition, the UK is seeking a far-reaching science and innovation pact with the EU. We will keep the financing needs of high growth businesses under continuous review as we leave the EU, and if necessary, we will use the British Business Bank to provide further support.

Financial Services: Insolvency

lord lee of trafford: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the legal basis that allowsadministrators of failed stockbroking firms to levy charges on clients' assets held by those firms.

lord bates: The legal basis for the payment of administrators’ expenses from client assets is contained within rule 135 of the Investment Bank Special Administration Rules (England and Wales) 2011 (Statutory Instrument 2011/1301).The Investment Bank Special Administration Rules apply to a broad range of businesses which hold client assets and are authorised to carry on a regulated activity which relates to the dealing, safeguarding or administration of investments as agent or principal, including stockbrokers.Rule 135 sets out that client assets may be used only to pay the expenses which administrators have properly incurred as a result of the work undertaken to ensure that client assets are returned as quickly as possible. The rule also sets out the order of priority for payment of those expenses.

TSB: ICT

lord scriven: To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with (1) The Financial Ombudsman Service, and (2) the Information Commissioner, regarding the recent loss of service and data issues to TSB customers resulting from the transfer of IT systems by TSB.

lord bates: The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is coordinating the Financial Authorities’ incident response, as the Authority responsible for consumer protection. The FCA and Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) have discussed the ongoing incident at TSB. The FCA has not yet had any formal discussion with the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) regarding the TSB incident, as customers are expected to raise their concerns with the FOS directly. However, the FCA has a dedicated team who liaise with the FOS and engagement on this issue will be directed through them. HM Treasury works closely with the other Financial Authorities to improve the resilience of the finance sector to operational risks and to respond to any disruption.

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

Fire Extinguishers

lord bird: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth on 22 December 2017 (HL4184), what assessment they have made of the introduction of mandatory sprinkler systems for new buildings in Wales in considering (1) the benefit of introducing such measures in England, and (2) the cost of such measures in England.

lord bird: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made, or intend to make, of the effectiveness of legislation mandating the provision of means of escape for (1) residential buildings, and (2) office buildings in preventing injury or deaths in fires.

lord bird: To ask Her Majesty's Government what analysis they have undertaken of domestic fire safety measures implemented internationally, including regulations relating to (1) the use of sprinkler systems, (2) the use of flammable cladding materials, and (3) means of escape.

lord bird: To ask Her Majesty's Government what analysis they have undertaken, or plan to undertake, on the impact on introducing fire safety legislation requiring high rise residential buildings in England to provide two means of escape.

lord bourne of aberystwyth: The Government has commissioned Dame Judith Hackitt to lead an independent review of the Building Regulations and fire safety system. Any decision on future fire safety requirements will be taken following the completion of that review, which is expected to be published this Spring, and will involve consideration of the likely impact of those changes. The department is taking preliminary steps to gather information that would assist us in doing so.

Ministry of Defence

Cyprus: Military Bases

lord northbrook: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact on the pension rights of those employed at the Sovereign Base Area's Defence Fire Risk Management Organisation of the proposed privatisation of that organisation; and whether there are any precedents for the proposed privatisation.

lord northbrook: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they intend to use current pension rights as a baseline for the new arrangements following the privatisation of the Sovereign Base Area's Defence Fire Risk Management Organisation, or to apply the provisions of the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations to the Sovereign Base Area as they apply in the UK.

earl howe: The Defence Fire Risk Management Organisation (DFRMO) is not being privatised. Elements of the Defence Fire and Rescue capability are already delivered by contractors at a number of Defence's fire stations. The Defence Fire and Rescue Project is examining the provision of this capability worldwide to assess whether there are alternative ways to deliver the capability at improved value for money, including the extension of contractor involvement, whilst ensuring continued protection of key military activities. The process is currently at the stage where final approvals to award a contract are being sought. Details of the Bidders' proposals for Cyprus are commercially sensitive but all employees' rights and employer responsibilities, including pension provision for the DFRMO Locally Employed Civilians in Cyprus, have been considered throughout the competition. Members of the Defence Fire and Rescue Service and their trade union representatives have been consulted at all stages of the project.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Agriculture and Forests: Subsidies

lord clark of windermere: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether theyplan toredraw grant schemes post-Brexit to create a level playing field between agriculture and forestry projects subject to the suitability of the chosen area for a particular planting scheme.

lord gardiner of kimble: On 27 February the Government launched the consultation document ‘Health and Harmony: the future for food, farming and the environment in a Green Brexit’.Our new agricultural policy will be underpinned by payment of public money for the provision of public goods such as those delivered through forestry. In the consultation document, capital grants are listed as one of the potential elements of a future environmental land management system.The results of the consultation will help to inform our future policy.

Forests: North of England

lord clark of windermere: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will set out plans to ensure a appropriate balance between productive forest and amenity forest in the new Northern Forest.

lord gardiner of kimble: The Northern Forest will deliver accessible community woodland, boost biodiversity and facilitate improved air quality, and increased physical activity and improved health and wellbeing. The trees planted in the Northern Forest will be guided by the principle of the right tree in the right place, in line with the UK Forestry Standard. Discussions about the balance between different forest uses are ongoing between the Government, the Woodland Trust and Community Forests Partnership, and other stakeholders. An announcement will be made in due course.

Forestry

lord clark of windermere: To ask Her Majesty's Government when they intend to name the National Tree Champion.

lord gardiner of kimble: A decision on the appointment of the National Tree Champion will be made in due course.

Environment Agency: Motor Vehicles

the countess of mar: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many vehicles the Environment Agency holds at present; how many new vehicles have been purchased in the last year; and at what cost.

lord gardiner of kimble: The Environment Agency has a total of 5,119 road registered vehicles and plant equipment. 183 vehicles were brought onto the fleet in the Financial Year 2017/18 at a total cost of £5,342,344. 23 of these vehicles were road registered plant equipment, such as excavators and tractors, and made up £2,536,052 of the total cost. The new vehicles were bought to replace older ones, some of which may still be awaiting sale and are therefore included in the total vehicle figure. The size of the Environment Agency fleet has been reduced by approximately 20% over the last seven years. Defra Group Fleet Services are constantly reviewing the size of the fleet, its makeup and its impact on the environment, to ensure we deliver the best operational service with the lowest environmental impact at the best possible price.

Timber

lord clark of windermere: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their assesssment of forecast availablity of timber; and what measures they will take to reassess the availability of supply.

lord gardiner of kimble: Timber availability forecasts are published by the Forestry Commission. The current 50 year softwood availability forecast and 50 year hardwood availability forecast were published in April 2014. These documents include the forecast timber availability in public and private woodlands in five year periods from 2013 to 2061. The Forestry Commission updates availability forecasts periodically. Results from the next update are due for publication in 2020.

Coastal Erosion

lord hunt of chesterton: To ask Her Majesty's Government what information they are collecting and publishing on the rates of coastal erosion in different regions, especially in rural areas; and what level of expenditure, if any, they plan to commit to reducing the current rates.

lord gardiner of kimble: Management of coastal erosion is a devolved matter. Coastal erosion is a natural process that always has and always will shape our coastline. The National Coastal Erosion Risk Maps provide a consistent assessment of coastal erosion risk around England and Wales, and contain predictions for the future. They have been available to the public on the Environment Agency’s (EA) website since 2012, but were temporarily unavailable in April 2018. The EA expects them to be live again in June 2018. We defend the coastline where it is sustainable and affordable to do so, and let the coast function naturally in areas where it is not. Coastal protection authorities (district councils) lead on management of coastal erosion risk in England. The EA provides a strategic overview to ensure that decisions on the English coast are made in a joined up manner. There are 22 shoreline management plans covering the 6,000 mile coast of England and Wales. The plans are based on scientific, social, economic and environmental data. The plans provide a high level, long term policy framework to manage the risk of coastal change over three time horizons: 20, 50 and 100 years. The plans recommend four approaches to manage the coastline. These scale from building and maintaining new defences (hold the line), to allowing the coast line to evolve naturally (no active intervention). These plans were developed by coastal groups in each area, the members of which were drawn from individual coastal protection authorities, executive agencies and other local interests. Between April 2015 and March 2021, the Government plans to invest £165 million in coastal erosion projects and £690 million on schemes to better protect communities against flooding from the sea around England. The Scottish Government provides local authorities with £42 million each year to help them invest in flood protection measures.

Food

baroness jones of whitchurch: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to publish a food policy.

lord gardiner of kimble: The entire food chain from farm to fork is worth £112 billion to the economy, employs one in eight workers across the UK and underpins over £200 billion of consumer spend. It is a sector that is vital for our economy and the wellbeing of our citizens. The development of food policy is focused on enhancing our resilient and productive food system so it continues to deliver high quality, affordable and nutritious products to consumers. There are currently two main elements. Firstly, as we prepare to leave the EU, we are working with our food and farming industry as well as environmentalists to change the way we invest in our countryside and better support our farmers to protect wildlife, enhance the environment and improve land use. Alongside this, our vision is for a more dynamic, self-reliant industry that can compete internationally by producing high quality food – one that commands premium prices on the domestic market and increases exports. Secondly, the Industrial Strategy will play an important role in bringing benefits to the food chain’s businesses, workers and consumers. The newly established Food and Drink Sector Council represents the entire farm to fork food chain, covering farming, manufacturing, retail, hospitality and logistics. This joint Government and industry group will seek to improve the productivity and sustainability of the industry. The Council’s first set of priorities covers workforce and skills, agricultural productivity, nutrition, packaging and waste, exports, innovation and logistics.

Water Treatment: Phosphates

lord berkeley: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether water companies are required to operate phosphate removal plants in areas where there are high levels of phosphorusrun-off; and what proportion of water supply facilities in such areas have operational phosphate removal plants.

lord gardiner of kimble: Phosphorus inputs to English rivers and lakes are mainly from sewage effluent, including contributions from food and detergents and drainage from agricultural land. Dramatic reductions from very elevated river phosphorus concentrations in the 1980 and 1990s have been achieved in recent decades through reduced detergent phosphorous contributions, the introduction of phosphorus reduction treatment at sewage treatment works, and falling fertiliser use and livestock numbers. Despite this, phosphorus is the most common reason for English rivers not achieving Good Ecological Status under the Water Framework Directive Regulations. Between 1995 and 2015 the phosphorus loading from water company sewage treatment works to rivers reduced by about 60%. By 2017 almost 700 sewage treatment works had treatment in place to reduce phosphorus loadings. This equates to some 25 million population equivalent, or just over 60% of the population served by sewage treatment works which discharge to rivers. Even after these reductions, sewage treatment works remain the largest source of phosphorus entering rivers nationally, and further improvement works are being planned and implemented by water companies to meet Water Framework Directive Regulations.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs: Internet

lord harris of haringey: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many cloud services contracts that were previously delivered by British cloud services providers for theDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs are now delivered by multinational cloud service providers; what is the value of those contracts; and what are the names of the previous providers.

lord gardiner of kimble: There are no Defra contracts that were previously delivered by British cloud services that are now delivered by multinational cloud service providers.

Home Office

Asylum: Children

baroness doocey: To ask Her Majesty's Government, when they closed down the National Register for Unaccompanied Children in 2011, whether any(1) data on unaccompanied children, and (2) information regarding missing children and human trafficking concerns, was retained by central government.

baroness williams of trafford: The National Register for Unaccompanied Children (NRUC) was not administered by central Government. When the NRUC was closed, arrangements were made to dispose of all data held on the database. No information from the register was retained by central Government.

Joint Maritime Operations Coordination Centre

lord west of spithead: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of whether there was a demand for maritime assets to respond to a number of recent incidents; and who in the Joint Maritime Operations Coordination Centre has the authority to decide on priorities and allocate forces accordingly.

baroness williams of trafford: Each incident and response is judged and decided on its own merits. At present JMOCC (Joint Maritime Operations Coordination Centre) focuses on intelligence sharing and coordination support to operations. It is the aspiration for JMOCC to have the authority to decide on prioritising and allocation of cross government capabilities by 2019.

Asylum

lord hylton: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will publish their response to Fair and Effective, the pamphletby Refugee Action; and what steps they will take to assess its proposals for an improved asylum system.

baroness williams of trafford: The Government is grateful for the continued partnership with Refugee Action and others on the delivery of an effective and efficient asylum system that protects the vulnerable. However, we do not routinely provide responses to a public statement such as this one.

Refugees

lord hylton: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have for integrating all recognised refugees, and for fully developing the human potential of those individuals.

baroness williams of trafford: The Government published the Integrated Communities Strategy Green Paper on 14th March (https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/integrated-communities-strategy-green-paper). This includes proposals on the future of integration support for refugees. The Green Paper sets out that the Government will work with civil society to increase integration support for refugees recognised after arrival in the UK. This recognises the importance that we place on integration for all refugees. The Green Paper also sets out plans to develop, with the Department for Education and the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government, a new national English language Strategy for England; and plans to share best practice and build on learning about what works in relation to support for refugees on employment, English language, mental health and cultural orientation. The Government will further develop these proposals with input from a range of stakeholders. Consultation on the Green Paper is open until 5th June.



Integrated Communities Strategy Green Paper 
(PDF Document, 1.97 MB)

Crimes of Violence

lord ouseley: To ask Her Majesty's Government what innovative measures are being introduced to tackle the causes of increasing levels of knife, gun and violent crimes; and what considerationthey havegiven to supporting and replicating the preventative work of the St Giles Trust's SOS project.

baroness williams of trafford: On 9 April the Government published the Serious Violence Strategy, which sets out our response to serious violence and in particular recent increases in knife crime, gun crime and homicide. The strategy stresses the importance of early intervention to tackle the root causes of serious violence and provide young people with the skills and resilience to lead productive lives free from violence. It contains over 60 commitments including the announcement of a new £11 million Early Intervention Youth Fund and a new National County Lines Co-ordination Centre to tackle violent and exploitative criminal activity associated with county lines. Voluntary sector organisations, such as St Giles Trust, will be essential partners in ensuring effective delivery of the strategy. In 2017/18 we funded St Giles Trust to deliver a pilot support service for victims of county lines and we are currently awaiting the final evaluation in order to draw from and build on the learning from this pilot.

Visas

lord taylor of warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment, if any, they have made ofthe effectsofcomplex visa procurement processes on the UK’s ability to attract global talent.

baroness williams of trafford: We have been clear that the UK is open for business and genuine visa applicants are always welcome. In the last year, UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) received just over 3 million visa applications globally, of which 2.7 million were granted. The average processing time for a non-settlement visa globally was less than 8 days; and 97% of non-settlement visa applications were decided without our standard 15 working days processing time.UKVI have a culture of customer satisfaction and are always reviewing how to improve their processes, using customer feedback.  The UK is open for business and visa applications from key emerging economies are up. Tourists and business travellers are always welcome and we continue to attract the brightest and the best for work or study.

Borders: Northern Ireland

lord taylor of warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government what progress, if any, theyhave made towards finding a solution for the Irish border issue.

baroness williams of trafford: In the December Joint Report, we reached a balanced set of commitments that reiterate both our commitment to avoid a hard border, and our clear position on preserving the constitutional and economic integrity of the United Kingdom.The Joint Report recognised that the UK and Ireland can continue to make arrangements between themselves relating to the Common Travel Area, and the Commission’s draft Withdrawal Agreement Treaty text builds on that agreement, confirming that the UK and Ireland can continue to work together as part of these arrangements.Following March European Council, the UK and EU negotiating teams have been engaged in discussions to negotiate in detail on all the issues and scenarios set out in the Joint Report.

Immigration

viscount waverley: To ask Her Majesty's Government whatestimate they have made of the number of family separations that might occur as a result of Brexit.

baroness williams of trafford: The agreement we have reached with the EU on citizens’ rights protects those EU citizens and their family members exercising free movement rights in the UK before the end of the implementation period on 31 December 2020. During the implementation period, family members will be able to join EU citizens on current EU law terms. After the implementation period, close family members will be able to join an EU citizen covered by the Withdrawal Agreement, where their relationship existed before 31 December 2020 and continues to exist when they wish to join the EU citizen in the UK. Close family members are spouses, civil partners and durable partners, dependent children and grandchildren and dependent parents and grandparents. Children born or adopted after the UK leaves the EU to or by those covered by the Withdrawal Agreement will also be protected.

Refugees

lord hylton: To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the governments of Italy and Greece about the relocation to the UK of children and adults in refugee campswho have family members already resident in the UK.

baroness williams of trafford: The UK is committed to close cooperation and collaboration with EU partners, including Italy and Greece, to ensure that where eligible asylum seekers and refugees with family in the UK can be reunited, primarily through the Dublin Regulation. The Dublin Regulation is a mechanism for determining the Member State responsible for considering an individual’s asylum claim, with clauses relating to family reunification. Where reuniting with a family member who has been granted protection in the UK, individuals may qualify under the family reunion policy. We have frequent contact with the Italian and Greek authorities, at official and ministerial level, to discuss the situation for migrants, including on joint plans to improve the effectiveness of transfers under the Dublin Regulation. The UK is providing support to help the Italian and Greek authorities, the European Asylum Support Office and the European Commission deal with flows of migrants, including by deploying experts and interpreters to the Greek islands as well as specialists to the EU Commission team in Athens and Rome, specifically to strengthen the intra EU asylum system. The UK has Liaison Officers in both Greece and Italy who work daily with our Italian and Greek counterparts, including assisting with the Dublin transfer process.

Immigration

baroness lister of burtersett: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is meant by the term compliant environment in immigration policy.

baroness williams of trafford: The term compliant environment refers to a framework of legislative and administrative measures for regulating migrants’ access to work, benefits and services in the UK. These are designed to discourage prospective illegal migrants from coming to the UK, incentivise voluntary departure or regularisation of status, deter legal migrants from breaching conditions of their stay and protect taxpayer funded public services. These have been introduced over more than 20 years by successive governments.

Immigration

lord roberts of llandudno: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to ensure legal immigrants are not treated as if they were illegal immigrants.

baroness williams of trafford: The Government balances the need to tackle illegal immigration with the need to protect those who are here lawfully from any unintended consequences. The compliant environment regulates migrants’ access to work, benefits and services in the UK to deter illegal migration and to protect taxpayer funded public services. The compliant environment includes appropriate safeguards, including the ability to exercise discretion where there are genuine barriers to persons leaving the UK, or measures would be deemed unduly harsh. However, it is right, in light of Windrush, that we review those safeguards to ensure that those who are lawfully here are not disadvantaged by measures put in place to tackle illegal migration. The Government has already introduced additional safeguards, and we will continue to assess what further action needs to be taken.

Department for International Development

Yemen: Humanitarian Aid

baroness hodgson of abinger: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to help the estimated 22.2 million Yemenis in need of humanitarian assistance.

lord bates: At the Yemen Pledging Event in Geneva on 3 April, the UK announced £170 million in response to the humanitarian crisis in Yemen for the financial year 2018/2019. This funding will include support for nutrition, clean water and sanitation, and meet the immediate food needs for 2.5 million Yemenis. The UK has provided over £400 million in bilateral support since the conflict began in 2015.

Yemen: Humanitarian Aid

baroness hodgson of abinger: To ask Her Majesty's Government what support they are offering to the women of Yemento alleviate suffering during the conflict there.

lord bates: The current conflict has affected every man, woman, and child in Yemen. As always, however, it has had a disproportionate impact on women and girls. The incidence of violence against women is rising rapidly, including: sexual violence; domestic violence; forced early marriages; denial of resources; and psychological and emotional abuse. Furthermore, the UN estimates that more than 1 million pregnant women or nursing mothers are acutely malnourished.Our support to UNHCR provides cash assistance for vulnerable displaced women and female headed households to access protection services, including support for women and girls to prevent and respond to sexual violence, legal assistance and counselling. The UK’s funding to UNICEF provides nutritional support to pregnant women and nursing mothers. The UK is also actively advocating for the inclusion of women in peace talks and encouraging political actors to take women’s views into account.

Burma: Rohingya

baroness sheehan: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to help ensure that Rohingya refugee women and girls have access to female sanitary products.

lord bates: Since December 2017, the UK has funded the procurement and distribution of 18,325 ‘Dignity Kits’ for women and adolescent girls, which contain female sanitary products.

Department for Exiting the European Union

British Nationals Abroad: EU Countries

lord birt: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer byLord Callanan on 19 April, what questions were put to the UK ambassador to France by UK nationals at the most recent British Citizens Outreach Meeting held at the British Embassy in Paris; what answers were given; and whether they plan to extend the scope of their communications to UK citizens living in the EU on how those UK citizens will be affected by Brexit.

lord callanan: Since the referendum, the Government has been reaching out to UK nationals in the EU at meetings, events and through digital channels. Our embassies and Ambassadors have engaged extensively with UK nationals in their host countries and since January 2018, almost 10,000 UK nationals have attended over 40 face to face outreach events. Digital outreach has reached thousands more. A wide range of questions were asked at this particular event in Paris. These related to the agreement on Citizens’ Rights and other matters related to our exit from the European Union. The agreement on Citizens’ Rights, as set out in the Withdrawal Agreement text, provides certainty on the rights of UK nationals currently living in the EU.

Department for International Trade

Trade Agreements: Mexico

lord allen of kensington: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the likely impact on the UK's ability to strike a free trade agreement with Mexico, of the recent free trade agreements that the EU has agreed with that country.

lord allen of kensington: To ask Her Majesty's Government what progress they have made in trade talks with Mexico; and at what level those talks are taking place.

baroness fairhead: As we leave the EU, we are seeking continuity in our current trade arrangements in order to avoid any disruption and to provide certainty for businesses and individuals. To date, meetings have been held at ministerial and official level aimed at delivering this objective. None of the partner countries, including Mexico, with whom we have held discussions, have any interest in disrupting trade flows. Once trade continuity is secured, we will look to strengthen our trade and investment relationships with key partners, including Mexico. Whilst we remain a member of the EU, discussions we have about trade are limited by our obligations under the Common Commercial Policy and our duty of sincere co-operation.

Trade Agreements: Asia

lord allen of kensington: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the likely impact on the UK's ability to strike free trade agreements with Japan and Singapore, of the recent free trade agreements the EU has agreed with those countries.

lord allen of kensington: To ask Her Majesty's Government what progress they have made in trade talks with Japan and Singapore; and at what level those talks are taking place.

baroness fairhead: As we leave the EU, we are seeking continuity in our current trade arrangements in order to avoid any disruption and to provide certainty for businesses and individuals.The UK has long-supported progress towards the EU-Singapore Free Trade Agreement and EU-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA), as one of their strongest advocates.The Prime Minister has agreed with Prime Minister Abe of Japan that we will work quickly to establish a new economic partnership between Japan and the UK based on the final terms of the EPA, and has agreed with Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee that, when ratified, the EU-Singapore Free Trade Agreement would be a good baseline for future bilateral trade relations. The Department for International Trade is continuing discussions with both Japan and Singapore through our Trade and Investment Working Groups to ensure continuity and certainty of these trade agreements and to develop new ambitious bilateral economic relationships once the UK has exited the EU.Whilst we remain a member of the EU, discussions we have about trade are limited by our obligations under the Common Commercial Policy and our duty of sincere co-operation.

Trade Remedies Authority

lord allen of kensington: To ask Her Majesty's Government when they expect to begin the process of recruitment for staff and members of the board of the Trade Remedies Authority, as provided for bythe Trade Bill.

baroness fairhead: The Department for International Trade expects to start the recruitment process for staff, and a Chair, as soon as possible in 2018, in anticipation of the creation of the Trade Remedies Authority (TRA). This will support the Government’s commitment to ensure that the TRA will be operational by the time the UK leaves the EU.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Data Protection: EU Law

lord hunt of kings heath: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether any data subjects will lose any abilities in respect of the sharing of personal data held by public bodies due to changes coming into force on 25 Mayunder the General Data Protection Regulation.

lord ashton of hyde: Public authorities will need to comply with the fundamental principles relating to processing of of personal data under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). That includes ensuring that personal data is processed lawfully, fairly and in a transparent manner. The GDPR strengthens the rights of data subjects in several key areas. For example, they will be able to access their data more quickly than provided for by the current law. Public authorities will also need to appoint a 'data protection officer' to inform and advise the organisation on compliance with the GDPR, subject to the remaining stages in the House of Commons and House of Lords.